What’s up? We wanted to give you some insight into the world of College and Career Readiness. This, like our Education from a Researcher’s Perspective post, will be based on foundational research related to College and Career Readiness. We hope this post provides value to you in a way that not only gives you perspective about how to be prepared for college and your career, but will also give you a research-based approach in the direction that College and Career Readiness is moving within our high schools. For educators, there will be some information about College and Career Readiness practices, and for students, you will get an in-depth analysis of how you can benefit from College and Career Readiness, including students with and without disabilities.
Before reading, here are a few resources you can use that can help you take an even deeper dive into College and Career Readiness, Enjoy!
Teaching Students to Dig Deeper: Ten Essential Skills for College and Career Readiness
Career and College Readiness Counseling in P-12 Schools
College and Career Readiness Mentor Toolkit
Researchers have recently voiced their concerns about the educational system in the United States. Specifically, they suggest that the 21st century economy and workforce in the United States have increasingly promoted the demand for college degrees, which requires college students to display adequate skills necessary to enter the workforce (Lombardi et al., 2013). Success in school is a central factor in the life of adolescents, as school success or failure can have a long-lasting impact on their future life (Oyserman et al., 2007). High school is a crucial time for development, as adolescents are, for the first time, beginning to prepare for their future academic and career opportunities (Lindstrom et al., 2019; Rogers & Creed, 2011). This means that college and career readiness (CCR) should be at the forefront of educational priorities due to the prerequisite requirements needed for opportunities after high school. A contributing factor behind the prioritization of college and career readiness is the support of the American Recovery Act and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which provided grant funding for this initiative and sparked a widespread emphasis for high schools to adopt CCR standards (Fowler et al., 2014). Further, building adequate skills and knowledge associated with CCR has become a goal of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) (Nadelson et al., 2014). These standards are meant to ultimately reduce the amount of unprepared high school graduates, especially those students who need additional education support (Nadelson et al., 2014). High schools have since identified CCR as a major focal point within the educational system that should promote students’ postsecondary success (Lombardi et al., 2013).
Theoretical Models of CCR
The emphasis in special education legislation to prepare students with disabilities for success after school developed from the Education of the Handicapped Act in 1986. Then, policymakers incorporated the use of an individualized education program (IEP) to help with transition planning. Further, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which is also specific to students with disabilities, mandates that all students with disabilities are required to receive transition services by the age of 16 with the goal of supporting students in achieving their goals in employment, postsecondary training, and independent living. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) further requires that all students are prepared for college and career, which is a part of the general education legislation (ESSA; 2015). These laws hold teachers accountable for ensuring that students are receiving the appropriate instructional support that will allow them to succeed after high school graduation (Monahan et al., 2018). The purpose of a CCR assessment is to serve as a benchmark for students who are and who are not deemed prepared for life after high school (Camara, 2013). An assessment allows for an opportunity to correct deficits and deficiencies while students are still in high school, which should decrease the need for additional support after high school (King, 2011).
According to Conley (2012), CCR is met when students are able to enroll and succeed in entry-level courses as well as career-pathway training programs without the need for developmental assistance or support. Conley (2012) further provides key dimensions of CCR that should be emphasized throughout the process. First, key cognitive strategies should be developed that can be useful in coursework as well as in social situations that may include conflict. Content knowledge, referring to the foundational knowledge of math, science and english, should be gained by students through engagement with the content as well as progress monitoring of their goals. Learning skills that include motivation, self-efficacy, self-awareness and collaboration should be encouraged to help students’ postsecondary adjustment. Lastly, transition knowledge and skills should also be encouraged to help the student successfully navigate the multi-faceted process of transitioning to life after high school.
Previously, measurement of college readiness primarily included the use of academic achievement, college admissions and placement test scores as determinants (Lombardi et al., 2011). However, while these scores may be indicative of academic potential to a certain extent, they do not account for the entire scope of skills necessary to succeed after school. Specifically, the traditional approach to CCR has been embedded in improving the academic performance of students, however, this approach may not fully address the developmental process required to complete high school and enter the workforce or postsecondary education, such as college or trade school (Hooker & Brand, 2010). Researchers proposed that the measures of CCR did not include non-academic factors that contribute to postsecondary success such as social skills, which are perceived as important as academic skills for postsecondary success (Conley, 2010; Savitz-Romer et al., 2013). Further, the inconsistencies in assessment of non-academic skills may negatively contribute to student success after high school, especially for students who need non-academic support such as students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) (Lombardi et al., 2015).
Of the key areas of adequate preparation of college and career developed by Conley (2012), high school students are least likely to be assessed in behaviors that are independent of a specific academic content area, such as self-monitoring, self-advocacy, goal setting, collaboration and perseverance during difficult situations (Conley et al., 2010). Fowler et al. (2014) refers to college readiness as the ability for students to understand and complete credit-based college courses, while career readiness is the ability to gain employment, obtain competitive salaries and garner an opportunity to advance in their career in a sustainable industry. Fowler et al. (2014) further notes that approximately 60% of high school graduates did not receive American College Test (ACT) scores that indicate college readiness (ACT, 2012). Lombardi et al. (2015) also suggest that the challenge of providing appropriate CCR resources for high school students was exacerbated by the measures of CCR, which include college admissions exam scores and high school grade point averages. Researchers further argued that these measures are not necessarily aligned with postsecondary instructors’ expectations (Brown & Conley, 2007).
College readiness is a completely different construct than college eligibility. While eligibility is a matter of satisfying high school graduation requirements, college readiness requires that students are able to succeed in a credit-bearing course, academically and non-academically, at a postsecondary institution without any support (Lombardi et al., 2013). A student can be college eligible, meaning that they’ve met all of the college admissions requirements, however, may not be able to successfully complete a college-level course (Lombardi et al., 2011). Camara (2013) suggests that direct evidence of standardized testing scores and academic performance will provide some significant evidence for determining CCR, however, numerous factors dictate if a student will graduate from high school or not and argues that non-academic factors influence life after high school and should be considered in studies of college success.
Monohan et al. (2020) further defines CCR as a multidimensional construct based on the acquisition of appropriate academic and non-academic skills that are necessary for success in college and a career. The specific level of academic readiness has traditionally been obtained through the use of standardized or college admissions exams, however, there is not an agreed upon assessment of non-academic skills necessary for college or career success (Conley et al., 2010; Morningstar et al., 2017). Monohan et al. (2020) conducted a systematic review of CCR frameworks to investigate the representation of students with disabilities within these frameworks. The researchers identified 26 articles with a variety of domains that included academic and non-academic skills. They found that there was a large emphasis on college and academic outcomes. Also, only a few articles selected for this review acknowledged students with disabilities. Further, only two (Conley, 2010; Morningstar et al., 2017) of the frameworks selected for their review incorporated academic and non-academic skills.
Monohan et al. (2020) provides a recommendation that researchers should identify weaknesses of CCR frameworks, specifically for students with disabilities. They also recommend providing a better clarification of CCR as it pertains to non-academic skills that will ultimately help inform policy and practice of the CCR frameworks.The current practices and motivation behind CCR originated from the secondary school reform movement, which developed during the same time as the promotion of evidence-based school-wide interventions (Morningstar et al., 2018). Specifically, a need for revisions to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) was a key motivation in the movement, which, as previously noted, predominantly emphasized academic achievement. Due to these revisions, CCR embodies a dual academic and non-academic framework that includes contextual factors that influence students’ school engagement (Hilliard et al., 2018). Further, educators are now responsible for the inclusion of academic as well as non-academic preparation opportunities for all students (Morningstar et al., 2018).
Thank you for checking in! We hope this provided value for you as you are either preparing students for their college or career or are a student yourself and would like to understand the importance of being prepared for the next step. As CCR continues to develop (and improve), we wanted to make sure you have a sense of the foundational motivation of CCR, as it is based on helping students succeed! We appreciate this initiative and look forward to positively build on this perspective.
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